Well, we got it done.

That was about as frustrating a game as I've seen this season, but that trusty Serbian came through again with a massive triple at the death. I can't even remember what Peja Stojakovic missing a three looks like.


Notes and such...

  • Final score was 111-107. Linkage: box | recap | standings

  • Peja was the hero (again), but I gotta give player of the game to Tyson Chandler in this one. He finished with 15 points and 16 rebounds, but it was his great help defense and nine billion bone-crushing picks that really made the difference. Late in the third, I counted him setting four separate screens on one offensive trip, all solid, and it was another great pick by Chandler that freed Peja for that late three. Not content with that, Tyson got a massive hand all up in Michael Redd's face to ensure the Bucks couldn't steal it at the buzzer. And did I hear he had a finger pop out during the game? Nice work, big man.

  • That was a great play to get Peja the three. Tyson's pick was only part of it. Excellent execution and misdirection. Polite clap for Byron.

  • We seemed to be lacking focus in this one, at least until the final minute. I can't remember the last time Peja was called for a technical. Chris Paul got one too, losing his cool and faking a pass at the ref after a non-call. Stupid stuff.

  • The Bucks were just on fire tonight though. It was almost like the Warriors game two weeks ago, except G-State never cooled off and the Bucks did, missing jumpers and free throws down the stretch. I thought Rasual Butler did about as good a defensive job as he could on Michael Redd, but that dude was just tossing stuff up with that crazy high release and finding the net every time. He would finish with 30 points. Redd got plenty of help, too, with five other Bucks scoring in double figures.

  • Chris Paul was apparently feeling ill for this one, a touch of the flu or something. He finished with 21 points, 10 assists and 3 steals anyway. One speed.

  • Meanwhile, David West put up 22 points and 8 rebounds. I thought he did a better job of passing out of the double teams tonight, and although I wasn't watching him very closely on D, methinks he actually played some solid help in this one.

  • Best get back to Peja though. 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting. He had a tough job trying to get free against Desmond Mason in the first half, but seemed to figure it out thereafter, scoring 14 points beyond the break. He has now scored at least 19 points in nine of the past ten games, earning that paycheck and then some.

  • Has anybody seen Melvin Ely? Hilton Armstrong is getting all the reserve pivot minutes lately. The kid did a nice job in that role tonight, coming up with a couple big plays on both ends. He kept the clumsiness to a minimum.

  • Gil McGregor was pulling puns out of every orifice tonight. They were Bucking ridiculous. (See what I did there?)

  • Crazy finishes to the first two quarters, with Jannero Pargo breaking the land speed record to drop a funky runner at the end of one, and Bobby Jackson banking in that three before the half. Bojangles finished with 11 points in the game, Pargo 7. The Bucks reserves won the scoring battle however, 28-24.

  • As mentioned, Rasual played Michael Redd tough on the defensive end, but he also came through with a decent offensive showing. He shot 4-of-6 from the field for 10 points, showing some versatility in his scoring. I think Peterson going down for these few games will probably help us in the long run with Rasual gaining some confidence from the increased PT.

So these past two games won't go down as the best back-to-back of the season, but we ride into the All-Star break on a four-game win streak and twenty-one games above .500. Can't complain about that.

I'll try get to a lot of the All-Star festivities this weekend and let you know how it goes. Also, keep an eye on Jim Eichenhofer's blog at the Official for some quality updates over the next few days.